Verena Issel

My studio is my observation tower: I watch my thoughts being materialized by my hands. And it’s also a place of endless joy. Most of the time at least.

What I do in one sentence: I do room installations that consist of many individual paintings, sculptures and films.

Why I didn’t get a proper job: What kind of question is this? Doing art is so much work, non stop all the time, and here we don’t talk about romantic paintings but administration, communication and promotion… I’m the most proper Issel-company and work much more than my proper Dad (HI DAD! ENJOYING YOUR WEEKEND? KISS FROM THE STUDIO!)

An artwork I dream of and I would get accomplished if space, time and money were abundant: Flying fireballs I can direct with my fingers. And… Super big and comfy bronze couches all over the city where people can lounge and hang out!

Why I do what I do: I love it. And very soon we’ll be very dead, so we should do something we love.

Artists, I have on my watch list (and why): Uh, hum… this changes every week… and this page doesn’t, I believe … feels unfair to answer here! I love Kurt Schwitters, the late Werner Herzog, El Lissitzky and Brueghel forever though. And the Malagan artists!

I am afraid of long painful disease and the man-made destruction of our garden Eden here.

I know that a piece is finished when it looks back at me.

How I want to be buried resp. words I want to be written on my tombstone: Glittering pink mini pyramids next to a mini volcano. Hum, wait. No. I want to be burnt and my ashes put in the sea next to some beach so some day tourist can lay on me. No. Maybe a quiet dreamy green lake in the forest would be better? Or no, too many bugs probably. Hm. Anyways, don’t put me in a box, please. By the way, just filled out my organ donor card in case of accident today. Hope no mafia reads this and kills me now. Aaaaah! Hey, I don’t want to die now!